Railway-switch.



No. 805,390. I PATENTED NOV. 21, 1905.

J. WAITE.

RAILWAY SWITCH.

APPLICATION FILED APR.24, 1905.

uw llll" f 'mib "i, A 'llllh 5 Hump' HHN 1i "ij- 11' n j "IMF I kv IW Ik uw MII im 3mi-Wwwfw Im 'Il JOSEPH VVAITE, OF BUFFALO, NEW YORK.

RAILWAY-SWITCH.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Nov. 21, 1905.

Application led April 24, 1905. Serial No. 257,101.

To all wiz/0m it may concern,.-

Beit known that I, JOSEPH VAITE, a subject of the King of England, residing at Buffalo, in the county of Erie and State of New York, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Railway-Switches, of which the following is a speciiication.

This invention relates generally to that class of railway-switches in which vertically-movable switch-rails are employed, one being depressed while the other is elevated to the levelof the stationaryrails. Such a switch is shown and described in Letters Patent of the United States No. 656,691, issued August 28, 1900, to rIhorn Oopeman and myself, and the present invention is intended more particularly as an improvement on that switch. Its chief object is to provide simple means for locking the cam-rollers or elevating means of the switch-rails in position, so as to prevent accidental displacement of the switch-rails.

Another ob ject is to more eiiectually incase the cam-rollers in order to exclude the elements therefrom.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure l is a top plan View of the switch. Fig. 2 is a longitudinal section in line 2 2,--Fig. l. Fig. 3 is a transverse section in line 3 3, Fig. l. Fig. t is a detached perspective View of one of the switch-rails and its cam-roller.

Similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts throughout the several views.

A indicates the rails of the main track, and B those of the siding, all of which are stationary and of ordinary construction.

C C are the two vertically-movable switch poilnts or rails located in line with the inner rai s.

The devices for raising and lowering the switch-rails may be of any suitable construction; but I prefer to employ for this purpose cam-rollers D, such as shown and described in the Letters Iatent heretofore referred to. These cam-rollers are rotatably attached to the switch-rails, preferably by a hinge connection, as shown in Fig. 4, and the cylindrical body portion of each roller bears against the under side of the companion switch-rail, while its cam portion or iiange Z bears upon a plate E, resting upon the ties. Each switchrail is guided between a filling or space block secured to the adjacent outer rail, and a housing G, arranged on the inner side thereof and secured at its ends to the corresponding inner rail.

The two cam-rollers are connected together in such a manner that when one is turned in the proper direction to elevate the corresponding switch-rail the other roller is caused to lower the other switch-rail or permit its depression. This simultaneous action is preferably eiected by providing each cam-roller with one or more crank-arms /L and connecting corresponding arms of the rollers by one or more transverse rods L, as indicated by dotted lines in Fig. 3. Three pairs of such arms and three connecting-rods are shown in lthe drawings to equalize the strain at both ends of the rollers; but a single rod may be used, if desired, as shown in the aforesaid Letters Patent. When three rods are employed` one of them, preferably the central one, is extended, as shown, to form the operatingrod of the switch.

The bearing-plates E extend throughout the length of the housings G and from the inner edges of the housings to the outer edges of the outer rails, as shown in Fig. 3, so as to close the bottom of the housings and the spaces below the camrollers, thereby completely inclosing the latter and preventing the entrance of rain, snow, &c.

To prevent accidental rotation of the camrollers and consequent displacement of the switch-rails, I employ a locking device, preferably consisting of a transverse rock-shaft I, extending' across the under side of the rails A B and the housings G and carrying locking lugs or projections c' z', adapted to engage a1- ternately with the cam-flanges CZ ofthe rollers, so as to lock the cam-roller of the elevated switch-rail and release the roller of the depressed switch-rail. In the construction shown in the drawings these locking-lugs are located on diametrically opposite sides of the rockshaft, and each is constructed of the proper width to enter between the cam-flange of the corresponding roller and the opposing wall of its housing G when the switch-rail is elevated, as shown in the left-hand portion of Fig. 3, thus blocking the rotation of the cam-roller and eifectually guarding against displacement of the elevated switch-rail. From an inspection of the last-named figure it is obvious that when one locking-lug z' is in its operative position the other is withdrawn or lowered to its TOO inoperative position. pon giving the shaft a quarter-turn in either direction from the position shown in Fig. 3 both of its lugs are withdrawn from engagement with the camrollers.

The locking-shaft is journaled in suitable bearings secured to the under side of the fixed rails and providedat one end with an arm c" or other appropriate means forvturning it.

The bottom plates E are provided with openings for the passage of the-crank-arms L and lugs i.

I claim as my invention- A 1. The combination with the stationary rails of the main track and the siding and the verticallymovable switch-rails, of elevating devices for alternately raisingthe switch-rails to the level of thestationary rails, a locking device for each elevatingldevicaand `a connection between said locking devices constructed to simultaneously move the same, the one into its operative position and the other into its inoperative position.'substantially as set forth.

2. The combination with the stationary rails of the main track and the siding and the vertically-movable switch-rails, of elevating devices for alternately raising the-switch-rails-to the level of the stationary rails, and a transverse shaft extending across the tracks below the sanne and provided with lugs arranged to interlock alternately with said elevating devices, substantially as set forth.

.3. The combination with the stationary rails of the main track and the vertically-movable switch-rails, of cam-rollers for actuating the switch-rails, stationary walls or housings located opposite the cam portions of the rollers, and a transverse rock-shaft located below the rollers and having locking-lugs arranged to enter between the earn portions of 'the-rollers and said walls, substantially asset forth.

4. The combination with thestationary rails of the main track and thesiding and the vertically-movable switch-rails,of'cam-rollers for actuating the switch-rails, housings inclosing the cam-rollers, and -bottom plates for the housings interposed between the same andthe ties and extending from end to end and from side to side of the housings, substantially as set forth.

Witness my handthis 20th-day of April,

JOSEPH VAITE.

`l/Vitnesses:

C. F. GEYER, E. M. GRAHAM. 

